Petcoke prices softer despite low inventories

摘要

Petroleum coke prices appear to be trending lower in the US Gulf Coast, despite depleted inventory levels, according to market sources. “The interesting thing is supply is non-existent, yet pricing is going downward,” a trader noted. According to the trader, the inventories are low because of 60-90-day forward deals that were conducted in the summer, with existing supply at refineries currently meeting those contracts. Between the spring and summer, petcoke prices had continued to rise but then hit a wall and started receding, a source noted.